Prime minister vows India will defeat terror; 200 dead

The Associated Press

Published Thursday, July 13, 2006

BOMBAY, India -- The prime minister praised this wounded city for its strength Wednesday, vowing that "no one can make India kneel," while a senior investigator said the Bombay train attacks that killed at least 200 people could be linked to a Kashmiri militant group.

A Foreign Ministry official demanded that Pakistan dismantle all terrorist networks on land it controls -- but fell short of directly accusing India's nuclear-armed rival of the attacks.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh highlighted the achievements of this city of 16 million, which staggered back to life despite attacks on the commuter train network Tuesday that killed at least 200 people and wounded more than 700.

"Your resilience and resolve will triumph over the evil designs of the merchants of death and destruction," Singh said in a televised speech. "Let me say again, no one can make India kneel. No one can come in the path of our progress."

Eight bombs ripped through packed trains at rush hour, stunning a city that sees itself as the embodiment of India's global ambitions, where the country's business community and entertainment world come together. The number of dead has risen steadily as rescuers found more bodies and people died of their injuries.

"We are just trying to establish what kind of explosives were used and where exactly the bombs were placed, but it appears they were kept in the luggage racks," said police inspector Yeshwant Patil.

P.S. Pasricha, director general of police for Maharashtra state, earlier dismissed Indian media reports that the powerful explosive RDX was used in the attack, saying investigators were awaiting the results of forensic tests.

Pasricha said investigators were looking into a possible link with Lashkar-e-Tayyaba, a Kashmiri militant group that has denied playing a role in the bombings.

Lashkar has previously carried out near-simultaneous explosions, according to Indian officials, who blamed the group for bombings in New Delhi that killed 60 people last year.

A spokesman for Lashkar, Abdullah Ghaznavi, denied the group was involved, saying "Indian security forces blame Lashkar in an attempt to defame Kashmir freedom struggle."